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Sunday, February 9, 2014

The Story of Young Love

As a young man marries a young woman; so will your Builder
marry you;

as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride; so will your God
rejoice over you.

Isaiah 62:5; NIV

I find myself in an interesting stage of life, with an empty
nest. Our daughter Kelsey graduated from
college and got married a year and a half ago.
Our son Kenney is graduating this spring, and plans to marry a month
afterwards.

So, young love and weddings have been a recent theme in our
household. It’s been both fun and
challenging. Fun to see our kids find
the person we’ve been praying for since they were born; both Fred and Andrea
are great matches for Kelsey and Kenney.
Challenging because our relationships are changing as our kids leave and
cleave to their new and soon-to-be spouses.

I am in the middle of experiencing these adjustments with my
son. Young love has changed Kenney. For years, he’s been the impulsive, throw
caution to the wind, free spirit of the family.
He’s the rule breaker who challenges the status quo and makes the rest
of us, a bit cautious by nature, gasp.
Kenney would blame that on having a detective and a pastor for
parents. What did we expect?

But young love has changed my son. I notice he’s not as impulsive. He’s planning, and saving money?? I can’t tell you how odd this is! He’s concerned about the future and how he will
provide. Most of our conversations now
are about Andrea, future jobs, and their dreams.

Watching my son fall in love and prepare for his wedding has
led me to think about Jesus’ love for me.
There is a bridal theme that runs throughout the entire Bible, from
Genesis to Revelation. Jesus is the
Bridegroom and we are His bride. For many years, I didn’t see it. But one day, while grief stricken over a
disappointment in my marriage, I felt the Holy Spirit lead me to Isaiah
62. This passage filled with bridal
imagery connected deeply with my soul.
During a time when I felt undesirable, God’s word said quite the
opposite: I was his crown of beauty,
desirable, delighted in, and cherished.

The storm in my marriage passed, but the call to study what
scripture teaches about the Bride of Christ grew. I have to be honest; at first I wasn’t
excited about it. I connected the word
“bride” to purity, marriage, and intimacy.
All things I felt I had failed at for various reasons in my life. That imagery didn’t fit me. Maybe you can relate.

Over 10 years has gone by.
During that time, God asked me to go back and deal with some brokenness
in my past. As I have experienced
healing and forgiveness, I am more open to seeing myself through the lens of a
bride. However, I resonate with what
I’ve heard Joyce Meyer often say, “I haven’t arrived, but thank God I am not
where I used to be”.

Recently, I spent some time fasting and praying to hear from
the Lord. I was led to a book of the
Bible I’ve resisted my whole life: The
Song of Solomon. Filled with poetic
imagery, on the surface it appears to be a story of young love between King
Solomon and a poor Shulammite woman.
But, I was surprised to discover there is a deeper story contained in
its pages, that of Jesus Christ and His bride.

Reading through the Song of Solomon, I sense Jesus asking me
to see Him through the lens of a groom anticipating His wedding day. Like my son with his bride-to-be, He wants me
to believe that I consume His thoughts, that His love for me is
passionate. When we are apart, He longs
for me. When I am uninterested, it hurts
Him. Honestly, this is riveting, and
hard to digest. But I am committing to
take it in, like food that nourishes a hungry soul. I know it’s what I need.

Chapter 3 gives a prophetic picture of Jesus returning for
us, His bride. “Come and look, sisters in Jerusalem. Oh, sisters of Zion, don’t miss this! My
King-Lover, dressed and garlanded for his wedding, his heart full, bursting
with joy!” (Song of Solomon 3:6-11;
TMB) Sistah’s take note: God’s love for us is deep and
passionate. Yes, He is our King, Savior,
Redeemer, but He longs for us to see Him as our Groom who will one day return
and whisk us away to be wed to Him forever.

In the months leading up to Kenney’s wedding, I ask you to
join me on the journey to discover our true identity as the Bride of
Christ. Enjoy watching young love emerge
not only in the experience of my son as he readies for his wedding, but also on
the pages of scripture. We’ll spend time
studying how young love is an image of Christ’s love for us and discover how
Jewish Wedding Customs shed light on the story of God’s love for His church.

What emotions are elicited in your heart when you try to
picture yourself as a bride of Christ, sought after and cherished? Do you, like I did ten years ago, feel it
doesn’t fit? Commit the next four months
to reading what God has taught me, and let His truth transform your opinion of
yourself, and of His view of you.
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